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4 Top Language Teaching Tools for Business

NEW YORK (
MainStreet) -- In this newly flat, hot world of ours, businesses can no longer afford to be monoglot affairs. So picking up some basic working Spanish, Arabic or Chinese really does open up opportunities for your shop.

Just like everything else in the digital world, the niche market for quick-and-dirty business language skills is crowded. Now just about any businessperson can pick from a wide range of Web-based, phone-based, heck, even flashcard-based language tools -- each of which can help you land a nice piece of non-English business.

It's expensive and cumbersome when compared with some rivals, but Rosetta Stone is the language-learning leader for a reason.

The only caveat? You absolutely must ignore the ridiculous claim -- that all these tools can't seem to help making, by the way -- that they "solve the problem" of learning a language. They don't. Learning a way to communicate remains the work it always has been. What these tools actually do is offer so many fresh approaches to doing the work of learning a language that one is bound to suit you better than the last time you tried.

So assuming you are even half serious about finding some new, non-English-speaking customers, here are four language tools worth a look.

Brain Scape Business Spanish (free)
I'm a flashcard guy. So I like flashcard-based Brain Scape. The company offers a slick mix of test prep and language flash cards that run from an
Apple(AAPL - Get Report) iPhone. And the free set of
Business Spanish cards are a solid start of drill phrases with answers. The genius of Brain Scape is its drills are on your smartphone. Got a minute? Drill a phrase. And considering how many Spanish speakers there are in the United States, you can often use what you just learned. Everybody loves a boss willing to meet them even a quarter of the way, and even basic foreign-language skills are a critical indication you know how to make diverse workgroups tick.

Dictionary.com Word Dynamo (free)
Though squarely aimed at the crowded test-prep world, there are some darn solid language tools in this Web-based system. What I found great about Word Dynamo is the varied test methods it throws at you. You can play word games, take practice tests and complete basic lessons in French, Latin and
Spanish. Be warned, though: There is a lot of contributed content, so some of the programs are flat. But if you are the sporting type, Word Dynamo's competitive vibe is worth a look.

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